Blog Archives

Living Simply is one of the main topics of the Living Smart courses. These resources will help you find ways you can bring simplicity into your life.

Books:

Suzanne & Kate Gibbs, The Thrifty Kitchen, Penguin AustraliaThe Thrifty Kitchenis your guide to cooking and shopping on a budget without compromising on flavour or goodness, brought to you by one of Australia’s most respected food families. Join food editor and writer Suzanne Gibbs and her daughter Kate Gibbs as they share their secrets for creating over 170 delicious dishes, as well as provide numerous tips for saving time and money and reducing waste.

Ghazi, P & Jones J (2004) Downshifting, Hodder Mobius, United Kingdom
This is a new edition of this bestselling guide to creating a simpler and more balanced life.

Websites:

Consumption RebellionConsumption Rebellion is a web-based magazine that looks to teach the potential exploitation arising as a result our consumption habits.

Down To Earth ForumsA forum to discuss all kinds of sustainability and simple living issues, the Down to Earth Forums are a welcoming and supportive community of like-minded individuals with a wealth of knowledge.

SustainaburbiaThis is a great blog, following the trials and tribulations of one family’s attempts to live sustainably in the suburbs.

While Australia swelters away in record temperatures this summer, the topic of climate change is also heating up. There are ways you can minimise your impact on the changes in the climate of the world, and we share some resources for you today.

Some of the information of this site may be outdated, but there is still a wealth of tips and tricks to get you started on reducing your impact on climate change. The department also seeks to keep people informed about changes to ruling made regarding the environment, so this is a good link to bookmark for future reference.

The State Government established the Office of Climate Change in May 2007 to coordinate a whole of government response to the twin challenges of climate change adaptation and mitigation. Now re-named, the Climate Change Unit is located within the Department of Environment and Conservation and is responsible for the whole of State Government coordination of policy and strategy regarding the economic, environmental and social impacts of climate change.

Know of any other resources you would like to share with other members? Let us know in the comments below.

Now that the major part of the festivities is over, the chances are there is a lot of waste lying around, waiting to be disposed of. In light of this, Living Smart presents the useful links for being Waste Smart.

Living Smart was fortunate enough to receive a Zerowaste Grant in 2012. The grant allowed us to revise the Waste Section of our Action Guide (now known as a Participants Guide), find local and regional case studies, conduct a Waste Audit and provide course resources for our facilitators.

Below are some very helpful links that have come from the Waste grant.
If you are looking to find your local waste facility, take a look here.

As part of the Zerowaste grant, Living Smart and City of Fremantle partnered to conduct a waste audit. Our own Living Smart member Emma Jack coordinated the event and it was an amazing insight to peoples waste. Here is a short video…..its well worth watching.

Books:Heyhoe, K (2009), Cooking Green: Reducing your carbon footprint in the kitchen, First Da Capo Press Edition
Choosing local, organic foods benefits your health and the planet’s. But how you cook is as important as what you cook: cooking itself is an under-reported yet substantial greenhouse gas creator. Now, Kate Heyhoe shows you how to think like an environmentalist in the kitchen.Healey, EJ (2010) Recycling and Managing Waste: Issues in Society, The Spinney Press
This book reveals the extent of our growing waste problem and examines the waste and recycling practices of households, and includes many tips on how to reduce, reuse and recycle. Topics include green waste, plastics, glass, paper, metal and electronic waste (e-waste).

Websites:Love Food Hate Waste
The Love Food Hate Waste program supports households and businesses across NSW to save time and money (but that doesn’t mean we can’t use the tips elsewhere) and reduce their impact on the environment by providing easy and practical solutions to avoid wasting food. Wasting food also impacts on our food sustainability and food security.

Western Earthcarers
Earth Carers think resources, not waste! We provide free education and support for the community to rethink their waste and to reuse and recycle more things more often.

Safer Solutions aims to inspire and encourage the community, industry, managers and policy makers to reduce the use and reliance on synthetic chemical pesticides by adopting Integrated Pest Management (IPM).

Your Home is a suite of consumer and technical guide materials and tools developed to encourage the design, construction or renovation of homes to be comfortable, healthy and more environmentally sustainable.

ATMA (The Australian Teachers of Meditation Association) is a nationally registered not-for-profit association. It has been established as a peak body in order to represent the various paths, styles and techniques of Australian meditation teachers.

Do you have some good resources online, or books that you particularly turn to for healthier living? Share your favourites in the comments below!

Did you know that over 4 million Australians will ride their bikes this year and that over the past 10 years cycling participation has increased by over 45%? To put it simply there has never been a better time to be involved in cycling. As a physical activity, it is in sync with modern life. It’s relatively cheap to get started and can be undertaken spontaneously with little very planning required. Riding a bicycle is a social activity that can be enjoyed with family and friends, plus it also allows participants to maintain fitness whilst spending time enjoying the outdoors.

Whether you’re an absolute beginner starting from scratch, someone looking to get back into riding after a break, an athlete looking for some coaching and advice or a volunteer looking to get involved in the sport there are countless opportunities to get in on the action. From Cycling Western Australia’s popular Austcycle programs right through to their talent identification initiatives, they cater for all levels and provide safe, structured environments to learn and improve your recreational riding and racing skills.

The Active Transport website has been created to bring together the Department’s cycling and walking activities and behaviour change programs. These programs provide the community, workplaces and local government with the information, tools and resources needed to become healthier in their travel choices and reduce the impact on the environment.

The Australian Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas is a nationwide network of professionals working (as volunteers) to reduce our oil vulnerability. We aim to bring the probabilities, risks and opportunities that Peak Oil presents to the attention of decision-makers.

We are part of a network of organisations around the world affiliated with the original Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas (ASPO) founded by Colin Campbell and Kjell Aleklett. The formation of ASPO-Australia is an initiative of the Sustainable Transport Coalition. Our patron is Hon. Andrew McNamara, previously chair of the Queensland Govt Oil Vulnerability Task Force and past Queensland Minister for Climate Change, Sustainability and Innovation

There are groups in most capital cities and some regional centres. We also have a range of different working groups to focus on the impacts and opportunities Peak Oil will bring to different sections of the community and the economy. We welcome suggestions and volunteers.